Bharatiya Vidharthi Morcha and Bharat Mukti Morcha unit of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh has visited the District Magistrate Mr. Raj mani yadav at 11 am today, 18th Feb-2016 to seek permission from his office to organize a “peaceful protest” on 22-Feb-2016 during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The permission letter as claimed by the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Morcha activists mentioned about their peaceful protest by showing ‘black flags’ to the PM and giving him a memorandum to act against the culprits involved in the institutional murder of HCU research Scholar Rohit Vemula who died last month, and to also take action against all the accused in the Banaras Hindu University where another Scheduled Caste PHD Scholar Mr. Pokhraj Meena is facing caste atrocities.
The district magistrate has however refused to grant them permission saying there are several other programs on that day during the PM’s visit. He further says displaying of “Black Flags” is an aggressive and serious attempt, which he cannot allow thus, has warned to take the activists into custody as a measure of precaution. The BVM activists refused to withdraw their program. Hence, the Magistrate has called Varanasi cantonment police where Vilas Kharat (BVM national leader) and Vijay Bharti, district president were arrested.
The police asked for One Lakh rupees deposit per head to grant bail for the two arrested to which the BVM activists and the arrested leaders refused. BAMCEF & BHARAT MUKTI MORCHA’s national president Mr. Waman Meshram in a statement released has said they would not seek any bail but will extend their protests across the state starting tomorrow for not allowing them to practice their democratic right to peacefully protest. It is reported that the arrested two were released at around 4 PM on bail after their lawyer visited the police station.
Vilas Kharat – File photo